Learning to Swear in America By Katie Kennedy Reviewd by Sean Click

Learning to Swear in America

By Katie Kennedy

Reviewd by Sean Click

Learning to Swear in America is a fantastic new novel by Katie Kennedy published in 2016.  It’s a Young Adult novel that would be perfect for girls or boys thirteen years old and older who are interested in Space exploration, Astrophysics. It’s about a boy genius named Yuri who earned his PhD from the University of Moscow by developing a theory for antimatter.  He is sent by the Russian government at the special request of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States to help save the world from an asteroid that has is hurtling towards Earth in direct target of California.  He is asked to become part of a team that has to come up with a solution in less than a month to destroy or divert the huge mass of spherical metal before its too late.  

            Once Yuri arrives in Pasadena he works on NASA’s Near Earth Object Program which is housed at the Jet Propulsion Lab on the California Institute of Technology campus.  We get to experience not only the suspense of California possibly being completely annihilated but also Yuri’s culture shock in America and his first experience being friends, kissing and going to a prom with a girl.  Having been such a child prodigy back in Russia, Yuri had a very lonely and unusual youth, so meeting Dovie is thrilling for him.  Dovie is an artist and of course the complete opposite of logical, rational, mathematically of California possibly being completely annihilated but also Yuri’s culture shock in America and his first experience being friends, kissing and going to a prom with a girl.  Having been such a child prodigy back in Russia, Yuri had a very lonely and unusual youth, so meeting Davie is thrilling for him.  Dovie who has hippy parents and lives in a house painted purple is an artist and of course the complete opposite of logical, rational, mathematically gifted Yuri.   Opposites seem to always attract in these Young Adult novels.   

            Yuri speaks impeccable text book English except for the omission of articles and of course he doesn’t know any curse words.   It’s Dovie’s assignment to teach how and when to swear, if and only if Yuri can save the world. 

            Yuri really discovers himself in this novel, but the books real edifying message is that guys who study science and aren’t so great at sports and hanging out can be superheroes and get the pretty girl too. 

            The background research the author provides on astro-physic and Russian language and culture are impressive.  I learned a lot about both reading this suspenseful page-turner.

            The book was a long read at 345 pages.   I did have to keep pushing past page 200.   She might have made it a bit more concise for impatient readers such as myself.  Overall it’s very enjoyable and would be a great compliment to a lesson unit on Space exploration.